Tertullian de Anima 46 and the “Dreaming Saturn”

a Hidden Testimony to the Myth of Zalmoxis in Aristotle's Lost Eudemus

Abstract

In this paper, I reconstruct a narrative by Tertullian about a dreaming Saturn attributed to a lost dialogue of Aristotle (on my view, the Eudemus). I argue that it is crucial to place this narrative into its proper geographical and cultural context, namely, Macedonia and Macedonian religion. Indeed, I show that Aristotle draws upon a myth in circulation in Macedonia which blended Greek Kronos with Thracian Zalmoxis. This is not surprising given that Aristotle spent not only his childood in Macedonia, but also ten years of his adulthood teaching in Mieza, in close proximity to Thracian tribes in Macedonia.

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